Joan Allen is an actress who has excelled in theatre, film and television. She achieved recognition early in her career for her Broadway debut in Burn This (1989), earning a Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play.

Allen's work in film has earned her three Academy Award nominations. She received a nod for Best Supporting Actress in 1995 for her role in the movie Nixon, and in 1996 she was nominated for portraying Elizabeth Proctor in The Crucible (1996). Four years later, Joan starred in The Contender (2000), earning an Oscars nod for Best Actress given her role as Senator Laine Billings Hanson.

In 2004 Joan Allen starred in The Bourne Supremacy, acting as CIA Director Pamela Landy. She reprised the role for the third film in the series, The Bourne Ultimatum, in 2007.